Improvement in cultivators



2 Sheets-Sheet 1. W. A. KNOWLTON 8v A..RUTLEDGE.

I Cultivator.'

No. 210,861. Patented Dec. 1 7, 18'2'8..

nilllllll N .FETERSA FHOToAuTl-IOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON c.

2 Sheets-Sheet. 2.

W. A. KNOW'LTON 8v A. RUTLEDGE.

Cultivator Patented Dec. 17, 1878.

N, PERs, PHOTO'LITHGGRAPHEM. WASHINGTON, u C.

UNITED STATES PAT W'ILLIAM A. KNONLTON AND ANDREW RUTLEDGE, OF ROGKFORD,ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN CULTIVATORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 210,86 E, datedDecember I7, 1878 application filed April 30, 1878.

To all tch-om it may concern.'

Be it known that we, VILLIAM A. KNOWL-I 'row an d ANDREW RUTLEDGE, ofthe city of Rockford, in the county of Winnebago and State of Illinois,have invented a new and use- 'ul Improvement in Gultivators, ot` whichthe following is a specitication: K

This invention relates to that class known as straddle-rowsulky-cultivatorsf7 designed for use on the farm mainly in thecultivation ot such crops as are usually grown in hills, check-rows, orin drills.

The object of our improvement is to produce at a reduced cost a moreefficient machine, and one that is capable of all the uses to which thisclass of machines is applicable. To this end we have designed andconstructed the machine represented in the accompanying drawings, inwhich- Figure l is a plan view of the machine embodying our invention,ot' which 2 is a front elevation; Fic. 3, a side elevation, in which therear carrying-wheel is omitted, and Fig. et is a lengthwise verticalcentral section. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the center or fth shoveland shovel-beam. Fig. 6 is arear view of the shovel-standard with theshovel thereto attached. Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the parts ondotted line fr, Fig. 5. Fig. S is a transverse vertical section of thefront joint on dotted line Fig. 3. Fig. 9 is a transverse verticalsection on dotted line x, Fig. 1'.

In the iigures, A are carrying-wheels fitted to revolve on axle-arms,secured to the under side and ends of the axle-tree B. The tongue .iscomposed of two beams, C, having their rear ends secured to the upperside of the axle-tree toward its outer ends. These beams converge asthey extend forward and meet at their forward ends, where they are ixedto each other and itted to receive the neck-yoke. These beams areconnected by a transverse bar, D, bolted to their under sides about online with the forward portion of the carryingwheels, and its ends extendbeyond the outside ot the tongue-beams. These parts constitute the maincarrying-frame, and are substantially the same as in some other machinesnow in common use.

E are pendants fitted with a shoulder-plate adapted to receive the underside ot' the outer ends of the transverse bar connecting the tongue-beams, and are firmly bolted thereto. These pendants are providedwith a bracingar'm extending rearward and upward to meet the outer faceof the tongue-beams rearward of the transverse beam, and are rmly boltedthereto. The lower ends of these pendants are litted with a verticalsocket, c, to receive the journal-arm of the central portion of thejoint, which connects the drag-bar to the pendant.

b is the center portion of the joint connecting the forward end of thedrag-bar with the pendant. Its upper portion, b', is of journal form,fitted to oscillate freely in the socket a in the pendant. The lower endof this center portion of the hinge is ot' disk form, provided with astud, b, which projects from the center of its face side at right anglesthereto. The center of this stud is bored to receive a bolt.

c represents a joint-plate fitted to receive the forward end of thedrag-bar, to which it is firmly bolted. Its forward end extends beyondthe forward end of the drag-bar, and is of disk form, centrally bored toreceive the stud b of the center portion b.

c is a screw-bolt, which is passed through the center of the stud. o isa tubular washer having a disk-like base, and is placed on thescrew-holt against the end of the stud b. d is an ordinary washer oflarge size, placedon the screw-bolt against the end of the tubularwasher. The screw-nut d is then turned `up against the washers, whichforce them against the stud 1),and holds the parts in position in such amanner as to permit of a free up-anddown movement of the rear end ot'the dragbar, and at the same time prevent any axial or rolling motionthereof, and the oscillation of the journal-arm b in the socket a in thependant will permit ot' the required lateral movement of the rear endsof the drag-bars.

F are the drag-bars, to which the joint-plates are secured that connectthem by hinge-joint to the pendants. e are shovel-standard brackets,consisting of a stud slotted on its outer end to receive the upper endof the standards, to which the shovels are attached, which, with thestud, is bored to receivea screw-bolt, to pass through the drag-bar,stud, and shovelstandards to iix them in place thereon. The inner endsof these studs are provided with a plate-like arm, e', which extendslengthwise of the drag-bars. rlheir forward ends are slotted radially,and their outer faces are serrated to receive serrated washers.

Suitable screw-bolts are passed through the drag-bars, the slotted endsof the arms, and through the serrated washers, and receive screw-nuts,by which the parts are held in position on the drag-bars, to holdtheshovels attached to the standards in working position.

By means of the radially-slotted arms and the clamping screw-bolts, theworkin g-angle of the shovels may be changed by raising or lowering theslotted end of the arm. rEhese standard-brackets, with standards havingshovels thereto attached, are fixed to the rear portion of the drag-barson their opposite sides, and at proper intervals, to insure the completeworking of the shovels.

c represents the shovel-standards, which are made from rectangular bars,curved as represented, having the shovels 6', of the usual form,attached to their lower ends. G are shields, made from plate material,and of the form represented, provided at their forward ends withaiiupward-risin g arm, j', of such form as to meet the inner face of thedrag-bar in advance of the shield-plate, at which point it is receivedon a pivot-bolt in a lengthwise X-form ed slot iii the plate-bracket f',which is secured in place on the drag-har by the pivot screw-bolt passedthrough the drag-bar, the bracket j", and the shield-arm The edges ofthe X-forined slot furnish inclined shoulders to limit the downwardmovement of the shields. These shield-plates are provided toward theirrear ends with an upward-rising guide-arm, f, the upper end of which isreceived in'a lengthwise slot iii the inward-projecting arm of thebracket f, secured to the shovel-standard bracket by the same bolt thatsecures the bracket and shovel-standard to the beam. This arm and itsconnection with the slotted bracket gives lateral support to theshields, and permits of their free vertical movement to overrideobstructions.

H are foot-rests secured to the drag-bars, and are designed to receivethe feet of the operator when mounted in the seat, and furnish the meansby which to impart the lateral movements tothe diag-bars, to cause theshovels to coliform to the sinuosities of the rows of plants. g areiiaiiged plates fitted to embrace the tongue-beams, and are providedwith a center tubular stud, g', adapted to serve as a fulcrum, on whichthe raising and lowering levers 7L are pivoted. g are segmentratchetsprovided with a foot-plate to rest on the upper face of the axle-tree,to which they are firmly' bolted. The forward upper portions o f theseratchets are provided with a radiusbar, having their lower ends iittedto receive the end of the tubular studs g', and a sufficient sci'ew-boltis passed outward through the tongue-beams, tubular studs, and the lowerend ofthe radius-bar, provided with a screwnut, by means of which theparts are firmly clamped to each other andV held in place.

The segment-ratehets g" are of that class known as the saw-toothedratchet, and are provided near their base with a few such teeth, and attheir upper forward ends with a series of similar teeth, leaving a blankbetween the toothed portions.

The forward ends of the levers h, pivoted on the tubular studs g', areprovided with slotted hook-plates 7L', fitted to engage the links of thesuspension-chain hf', the rear ends of which are connected to the dragbars, rearward of their connections with the forward ends of the levers,and in connection with the levers are' employed to raise andlowei thedrag-bars and the shovels thereto attached. The levers 7L are fittedwith a spring-pawl, t, fitted to engage the teeth of the ratchet, andare operated by a thumb-lever, t', pivoted to the handle end of thelevers, and connected with the sprin g-pawl by a linked rod, if. Theseparts are'of such construction that in depressing the hand end of thelever thepawl will override the ratchet-teeth, but will engage them toprevent the lever rising, and when disengaged from the teeth, near thebase of the segments, will freely slide upward over the blank portion ofthe segment until it comes in contact with the teeth on the upperforward portion of the ratchet.

From the Vforegoing it will be seen that by means of the slotted hook hand the links of the chain h, the parts maybe adj usted to cause theplows to run at a proper working depth wh en the pawl engages the iirstrearward tooth on the upper portion of the segment, which will furnish aready method of adjusting the plows to a proper working depth; but thisdepth may be increased by changing the pawl to any of the teeth higheron the segment, or its working depth may be lessened by hooking thechain higher in the slotted hookingplate on the lever. By depressing thelever until the s prin g-pawl engages the ratchet-teeth at the base ofthe segments, the drag-bars and their attachments will be held in anelevated position, for the purpose of transportation, or for any otherpurpose requiring their elevation.

In this construction of our improved cultivater, the points on which thedrag-bars are supported as the pivotal points of their lateral swingingmovements are so nearly in the same vertical line that the lateralswinging movements of the shovels in the cultivation of crops will bepractically iii the same horizontal plane, l is a sway-bar composed oftwo like halves made from bar material bent edgewise, each half forming`two sides of a rectangle, and placed in such a manner that one leg ofeach half shall overlap each other in such a manner that the bent barsshall forni three sides of a rectangle, and the overlapping portionsforming the crowning portion of the sway-bar are provided with a se riesof holes i'n corresponding pairs to receive screw-bolts to hold themrmly connected, and by means of which, in connection with thecorresponding pairs of holes, are made adjustable to increase or lessenthe distance between. their depending legs. The sway-har I, asdescribed, is suspended in front of the axle-tree to swing parallelthereto on radiuslinlrs 7c, pivoted to its depending legs and supportedon hooks la', which project from the lower side of the segment-ratchetsoutside of the lifting-levers to swing freely without interferin g withthe levers. The depending legs of this sway-bar pass through guideloopsk", secured to the drag-bars, which permit of an independent verticalmovement of the dragbars, but control their lateral movements tov causethem to move in unison, and, by `means of the screw-bolts and thecorresponding pairs of holes in the overlapping parts ofthe crowningportion of the sway-bar, the rear ends of the drag-bars maybe adjustedtoward or from each other to plow closer to or farther from the plants.The seatframe is composed of beams K, bolted to each other at their rearends, and diverge as they extend forward over the axle-tree to meet theinner faces of the tongue-beams forward thereof, and are provided with alengthwise-slotted plate, l, to receive the screw-bolt, which securesthe seat K to the Seatframe, and is made lengthwise adjustable thereonby means of the lengthwise-slotted plate to balance the machine andaccommodate difiereiit operations. The forward ends of these divergingbeams K are provided with metallic plates l', the outer faces of whichare parallel lengthwise, and adapted to meet the inner faces of theangleblocks l", secured to the inner faces of the tongue-beams. The.forward ends of the plates l! are provided with a series of holes in avert-ical line to receive the bolts which are passed throughthe'tongue-beanis and through blocks Z", and furnish the means for thevertical adjustn'lent of the scat, and hold the seatframe pivoted on theaxle-tree, and the parallel faces of the plates on the forward ends ofthe seat-frame permit it to be turned forward on the tongueframe, whenthe machine is used as a walkin g-cultivator, or for any other purpose,without strain on the bolts which connect it with the frame of themachine.

YL represents an evener, which is centrally pivoted to draft-bars in,connected to transversebar I). The outer ends of the evener are providedwith hooks m to kreceive the whiletrees m. These parts constitute theevener as commonly employed; but to adapt it for use on the machine whenemployed as a walkin g-cultivator or as a stalk-cutter, I have providedthevertical eveners n,pivoted at their. upper ends to the outer ends ot'the horizontal evencr, and centrally tothe axle-trees by draftrods n.The lower ends ot' these vertical eveners are provided with a hook, n,to re ceive the whifdetree m", and whenso em ployed in use will relievethe downward draft of t-he tongue on the necks of the team. Thesevertical evencrs and their connections with the horizontal evener andaxle-tree are of such construction as to admitof their removal andapplication as circumstances may require, and in each instance in use7either single or compound, to be a complete operating evener.

M represents the beam of the center or iift-h shovel frame, with athree-part shovel-standard thereto attached, in which 0 are curvedplates, of any suitable material, fitted one to each side of the mainstandard c. These plates are provided with holes near the center oftheir length that correspond with the hole in the lower end of thestandard, and receive a screw-bolt or rivet, which fixes them inposition on the standard in such a manner as to permit them to turn ason a pivot. The upper ends of these plates are provided with a hole,which meets a corresponding hole in the stand ard, and are pro videdwith a fran gible pin sufficient to bear the resistance of ordinarycultivation. y i

o is the shovel, fitted with a hollow shovelhack7 o, having convex outersurface slotted transversely to permit the shovel to be turned to theright or left on a bolt, p, passed from its inner side outward. A block,p', having its outer face concave to receive the convex outer surface ofthe shovel-back, is grooved vertically on its opposite side to receivethe forward edges of the plates o, and ablock, p, is grooved verticallyon its forward side/to receive the rear edges of the plates o. Theseblocks p and p are provided centrally with holes to receive thescrew-bolt p from the shovel-back, which passes through them and betweenthe plates o, and is provided with a screw-nut on its outer end, bymeans of which the parts are clamped together to hold the shovel inposition on the standard. By means of this device the shovel maybeturned to the right or left, to throw the earth to or from the plants.It may be adjusted up or down on the standard to regulate its rel ativeworking depth, and the frangible pin in its upper end will be brokenunder severe strain, and permit the shovel to turn bacl; to pass rigidobstructions, and prevent breakin g the shovels. To the forward end ofthe drag-bar M are secured bracing-like arms s, the forward ends ofwhich are bored to receive the necliing of the tubular washer c" on thecenter screw-bolt c', and inside of the common washer d. The rear end ofthe drag-bar M is fitted with the rightangled arm t, bolted to its`underside. Its upward-projecting arm is provided with holes to receive theinner end of the bolt that connects the forward shovel-standard to thedragbar, which serves to give steudiness to the center shovel, and putsit under the control of the movements of the drag-bar, to which it isconnected. This center or fifth shovel is rep resented in position indotted lines in the plan view at Fig. 4, and is designed for use in thepreparation ot' the soil, preparatory to plant ing, seeding in, andother purposes for which a cultivator is applicable on a farm.

We claim as our invention- 1. A pendant provided with bracing-armsadapted to be secured to the side of the tonguebeam and to the underside of the cross-bar connecting the tongue-beams, the lower end of saidpendant provided with a socket, in combin ation with a joint-bar havinga journal, b',

which turns within the socket on thependant,

the lower end of the joint-bar provided with a stud, 1;, and the plateofthe drag-bar journaled on said stud and secured by a bolt,substantially asset forth.

2. The evener having end hooks rigidly secured thereto for theattachment of the whiflie trees7 in combination with removable verticaleveners pivoted to the straps of the end hooks, the lower ends of saidvertical eveners provided with hooks to receive the whiflletrees, anddraft-links secured at their rear ends to the axle-tree, while theirforward ends are attached to the vertical eveners, substantially as setforth.

3. The combination, with the hereinde scribed three-partshovel-standard7 of grooved blocks adapted to receive the forward andrear edges of the side plates of the Standard, and

adapted to receive a shovel on the front side of f the forward block,held in place thereon and made vertically adjustable on the standard b va screw bolt or bolts passed lfrom the front through the parts betweenthe side plates of Y edges of the side plates ofthe standard7 the frontface of the forward block adapted to receive lthe convex surface of theshovelblock secured .j ustable on the standard by means of the screwboltin the slot of the shovel-back passing` through the grooved blocks andbetween the side plates of the shovel-standard, substatitiall5T as andfor the purpose hereinbefore set forth.

WILLIAM A. KNOWLTON. ANDREW RUTLEDGE.v Witnesses:

A. R. ALBER'rsoN,

A. O. BEHEL.

